Centrifugal amalgamator



Patented Oct. 27, 1 925.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HAROLD N. BANKS AND GEORGE E. BANKS, F DELTA, UTAH.

CENTRIFUGAL AMALGAMATOR.

Application filed October 18, 1921. Serial No. 508,555.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, HAROLD N. BANKS and GEORGE E. BANKS, citizens of the United States, residing at Delta, in the county of Millard and State of Utah, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Centrifugal A-malgamators, of which the following is a specification. 7

An object of this invention is to so construct a device that in its operation it succeeds by the application of centrifugal force, gravity,-levitation, attraction and cohesion, separation and repulsion, in separating and recovering fine gold, flower gold, silver, platinum and other precious minerals and pre cious stones from auriferous deposits and from crushed ores.

An object of this invention is to provide simple, eflicient, and superior means whereby the above object may be obtained.

Another object is to provide a device of this character which. has larger capacity and higher efliciency than former amalgamators.

Another object is ease of operation, and case of access for the purpose of clearing passages through which the crushed ores flow.

Other objects, advantages, features of invention may appear from the accompanying drawings, the subjoined detail description and the appended claims.

The accompanying drawing illustrates the invention.

Figure 1 is a front View partly in vertical section and partly in perspective, of a device constructed in accordance with this invention.

Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the bowl, the supporting means being broken away to contract the view.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of one of the rilfles.

Fig. 4 is a fragmental detail of one of the riflles before adjustment.

The base 1 may be of cast steel or any other suitable material and is adapted to be bolted to a solid floor of wood or concrete, to avoid vibrations from operation of the device.

A vertical shaft 9 has secured to its lower end an inner ring 4 which is held in nonrotatable engagement with said shaft by means of the screw 5, and is journalled in an outer ring or ball bearing shoulder 2 fixed to said base by screws 3. The lower end of the shaft-9 rests upon a conventional antifriction bearing 7, 8 interposed between the base and the end of said shaft 9; and antifriction balls 6 are interposed between the inner ring 4 and the ball bearing shoulder 2 .to form a suitable anti-friction bearing for the shaft.

The shaft 9 is held vertical by means of braces that are fixed at one end to the base or floor by means of bolts 16. The upper ends of the braces 15 are secured by bolts 12 to the casing 11 in which the shaft is rotatably mounted and said casing has thrust bearings 13that are oiled by cups 14.

The upper end of the shaft 9 is provided with screw threads 27 that are in threaded engagement with the boss a: thatextends downward from the center of the bowl bot tom. A plate 28 is fastened by screws 29 to the boss a and prevents the bowl from being accidently disengaged from the shaft 9.

The bowl 17 and shaft 9 may be. rotated by any suitable means adapted to rotate the pulley 10 which is secured to the shaft 9.

The bowl 17 has vertical inside walls 30 provided with lateral grooves b in which demountable riflies 18 are fitted. The rifl'les are preferably rectangular in cross-section and are so constructed as to entirely fill the grooves b and hold themselves in place in the grooves b by spring tension, and project horizontally into and from the bowl walls at right angles to the vertical inner faces of said walls 30.

The top ofthe bowl is provided with an unobstructed edge or rim 19 which projects over the discharge trough 20 that is held in position by means of the rods fastened to the base by lock nuts 24, and said rods are fastened to the discharge trough by clamps 21 and 23.

The discharge trough comprises an inner wall 0 and outer wall d and a base or bottom 6. The inner wall 0 of the discharge trough is so positioned relative to the bowl 17, that its upper end is accommodated in the groove f formed around the top of the bowl 17 by the depending flange 19.

A rim 31 is secured to the outer wall (Z of the discharge trough by any suitable means such as the bolts 22. extends at an angle from the side (Z of the trough over and above the rim of the bowl and overhangs the bowl about one inch more or less, so as to avoid slopping of the material that passes over the upperedge of the bowl into the discharge trough 20 the bot- Said rim 31 tom 6 of which is inclined as shown in Fig. l and said trough is provided at its lowest point with an outlet pipe 26 that is adapted to carry ofi'the waste material from said. trough.

In practical operation a thin sheet ofmercury is applied to the inner surface of the bowl to amalgamate the gold that comes in contact with it. The mercury is also adapted to hold platinum and silver and other precious metals; and to hold precious stones in place against the inner surface of the bowl between the riflles and repulses the lighter material thrown outward toward the sides of the bowl by centrifugal force" until levitation or upwardly, directed momentum pressure causes such lighter material to flow over the brim of the bowl intothe discharge trough from which it flows by gravity through the outlet pipe 26.

The bowl fisrevolved "11 any well known manner' and the speed of its revolutions and the quantity of the inflow of material are regulated to produce perfect results.

The inflow is by gravity through a pipe not isho'wn leading from a mixer tank, not shown, where the aurifer-ous material or crushed ores are mixed with water to a thin consistency to permit of easy flow into and perfect treatment in the bowl. 7

The product of amalgamated precious metals with or without precious stories is obtained by s'topping the machine, removingv t liebowl' fronrthe upright shaft and dumping the contents; or suchcontents may befr'eclovered with proper tools and appliances, not shown, without removing the bowl from the shaft. I I p v p v Upon rotation of the vertical straight sided' bowl having riflles extending into the bowl at right angles to such sides the finely pulverized ore is thrown by centrifugal force nst thesides of the bowl and is forced upward along said sides in a thin sheet which will becontinually broken up and tlioro'iiglfly turned over and stirred by the angles and horizontal surfaces of the projecting rifiles so as to cause every particle of theore to contact with the mercury. the barren content of theore has passed the top rifHe 18 it will pass over the unobstructed edge of the bowl into the discharge trough.

An advantage in having the sides of the bowl Vertical and provided with riflies' projecting horizontally into the bowl is that the ore will be continually and more effectively broken up, stirred, and turned over whether the ore is being forced up the sides of the bowl or whether it is going down the sides when the centrifugal force is diminished. By having the rifiles extend horizontally into the bowl they will not form a slanting surface over which the ore may easily pass when going upward along the sides of the bowl, and will not form a recess to catch and retain the ore therein when the centrifugal force is diminished.

An advantage gained in having the rim of the bowl and also the upper portion of the bowl walls-from the upper rifile 18" to the rim smooth and unobstructed is that the barren material may easily flow out of the bowl without likelihood of clogging thus insuringcontinuous operation and greatly increasing the capacity of the amalgamator.

, We claim: I

1. A centrifugal amalgamat'or comprising a rotary bowl having vertical lateral grooved sides and unobstructed rim, and resilient riflle's held in said grooves by spring tension and adapted to entirely fill said grooves and projecting horizontally into said bowl.

2. A centrifugal amalgamator comprising a rotary bowl having'vertical sides provided with grooves; and 'r'ifile means adapted to entirely fill said grooves and being detachablymounted in said sides, said bowl being smooth and unobstructed from the ri'flle means to andover the rim of the bowl.

HAROLD N. BANKS.

GEORGE E. BANKS.

After 

